EESA01H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 16: Biopower, Radioactive Waste
Document Summary
Alternatives to fossil fuels y nonrenewable energy sources like oil, coal, and natural gas will not last forever. In hydroelectric power or hydropower we use kinetic energy of moving water to turn turbines and generate electricity. Nuclear power y nuclear power- useable energy extracted from the force that binds atomic nuclei together- occupies an odd and conflicted position in our modern debate over energy. If not controlled, this chain becomes a positive feedback that creates explosive power of a nuclear bomb. Fission in reactors generates electricity in nuclear power plants y for fission to begin in a nuclear reactor, the neutrons bombarding uranium are slowed down with a substance called moderator, most often water or graphite. Breeder reactors make better use of fuel but have raised safety concerns y breeder reactors like the canadian candu reactor make use of 238u, which y in conventional fission goes unused as a waste product.
